​Office of Degree Authorization (ODA)

As part of the HECC Office of Private Postsecondary Education, the mission of the Office of Degree Authorization (ODA) is to assist Oregon students and their families in attaining a postsecondary education and to enhance the value, integrity, and diversity of Oregon's college programs.

The Office of Degree Authorization is required by statute to provide for the protection of the citizens of Oregon and their postsecondary schools by ensuring the quality of higher education and preserving the integrity of an academic degree as a public credential. ODA administers laws, standards, and services that protect students, holders of legitimately earned degrees, institutions, businesses, employers, patients or clients, and licensing boards.

All degree-granting private post-secondary institutions offering academic programs in Oregon, or to Oregon students from outside the state, must be approved by the Office of Degree Authorization.